Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, I thank the hon. member for her intervention again in this particular matter. There is a fundamental proposition that is being asked of the government in the House on this matter, which is do we trust the member—whose colleague, the member for Esquimalt—Juan de Fuca, has said on the record that there is “no crisis at Canada Post currently”, a sentiment shared by Liberals on the record in the House as well—or do we trust the econometrics of a credible independent third party think tank in our country that applied an econometric model in forecasting, and not only analyzing, what Canada Post's current dire situation is?

Victims Bill of Rights  Same speech all night long. Wrap it up.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, that is nonsense. The member should know that Canada Post is an arm's-length crown corporation. It operates on a day-to-day basis, including its long-range strategic plans. It does have a five-point plan. Why? It is because the Conference Board of Canada has done a study that indicates, as a result of moving a billion fewer letters than it did six years ago, and that trend forecasts to go into the future, it could lose as much as a billion dollars annually.

Energy Safety and Security Act  Seriously? Watch your language a little.

Railway Safety  Mr. Speaker, that is utter nonsense. This government has taken significant actions with respect to improving rail safety; many of those measures, by the way, opposed by New Democrats opposite. We have worked with our partners, with the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, with the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs, and with a number of stakeholders to improve information sharing with municipalities, for example.

Rail Transportation  Mr. Speaker, I would remind the member that it is this government that has been supportive of VIA Rail in terms of appropriations time and again and it is the party opposite that continues to vote against it, though members say somehow they are supportive of it. I would remind the member opposite that any decisions by VIA Rail are in fact VIA Rail's own decisions.

Air Transportation  Mr. Speaker, as the member will know, the Aéroports de Montréal operates at arm's length from the federal government and is responsible for its own operational day-to-day decisions. With respect to the latter part of the member's question, I will take that matter under advisement, bring it to the minister and report back.

Rail Transportation  Mr. Speaker, again, quite to the contrary, the government has taken a number of very significant actions to ensure that the transportation of dangerous goods and rail safety in this country are ensured, actions that are consistent with recommendations from the Transportation Safety Board.

Rail Transportation  Mr. Speaker, quite to the contrary, there is a robust regulatory regime in this country, and our government has taken a number of significant actions to ensure rail safety in this country. We have completed more than 30,000 inspections in the last year. We invested more than $100 million in our rail safety system, and we have important agreements on information-sharing with municipalities on the testing and classification of dangerous goods.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, that is from a member whose party said very clearly that there is no crisis at Canada Post, when in fact it delivered a billion fewer letters in 2012 than it did in 2006. In fact, economists at the Conference Board of Canada have said that Canada Post would be losing up to $1 billion per year if it took no action.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, in 2012, Canada Post delivered one billion fewer individually addressed lettermail pieces than it did in 2006. Only the NDP would stand in this House and say that there is no crisis at Canada Post, but Canadians are not buying that. In fact, two-thirds of Canadians currently do not receive door-to-door mail delivery.

Canada Post  Mr. Speaker, to be clear, Canada Post has a five-point plan to modernize the postal service. Obviously, we support that Canada Post do something about the bleeding on its balance sheet. It is posted, according to a Conference Board report, to lose up to $1 billion a year by 2020, which is not that far away.

Business of Supply  Mr. Chair, first let me add for the public record, as the day is drawing to a close, my best wishes to the minister for a happy birthday. Let me commend the minister as well, who is doing a fine job in the transport portfolio. She is demonstrating that she is one of the ablest transport ministers Canada has ever had.

Business of Supply  Mr. Chair, on the particular topic of Canada Post, speakers have noted that Canada Post has put forward a five-point plan. In that there are a mixture of measures both to increase revenues for the company, as well as cutting costs. One of the items not talked about, but is a looming issue with respect to all postal operations around the world, or at least in advanced economies, is some of the difficulties funding pensions.

Business of Supply  Mr. Chair, it is a pleasure to ask a question of the minister. In reviewing the independent Transportation Safety Board's statistics over the last few years with respect to rail occurrences, two of the most persistent areas for difficulties remain trespasser and crossing accidents, including fatalities.